ChosenOne

You can order the Lobster roll with melted butter instead of mayo but they will tell you it will take a bit longer because they have to prepare it instead of using lobster & mayo that has already been mixed together.  It was good though so do try it.

We liked Cucina in the evening and found the service to be fine.  Only thing we could have lived without is the servers singing Italian songs with a Russian, Croatian, etc accent. LOL

Glad I got to cruise the Baltic (Russia, Estonia, Germany, Denmark, Finland etc) when the Splendor came out in 2008.  Sorry to hear Carnival doesn't even want to offer Baltic any more....it was fascinating!

I remember when they first implemented the different color cards & when I became Platinum and was boarding the ship I proudly held my card up and one of the crew smiled at me and said "that card entitles you to a free desert in the main dining room" and I just laughed....but I still remember that moment!    Free laundry & priority boarding are what I appreciate most.  They used to give you a plate of chocolate covered strawberries one night and a plate of canapes another night.  I don't miss those canapes and now I rarely eat the strawberries.  I wish they would give us a choice of what we get.      The gifts" some are awesome & usefully, some not so much.  It is the thought that counts, right?

On 7/10/2019 at 3:01 PM, scrapycruiser said:

What are the hours of the Red Frog Pub on the Breeze. Wondering if we could have supper there. 

we did that one night as an alternative to eating on the Lido or MDR.  The portions are small...like tapas so depending on your appetite you may need to order more than one item.

I know soda won't come with a straw......I meant to indicate that I usually pour my soda or iced tea into my own personal Tervis tumbler which has a large matching plastic  tervis straw....so I have my own germs on my own straw  anyway.    If pop is cold in the can I will drink from the can if I have to.  I drink iced tea or lemonade or water on the Lido deck without use of a straw so I don't see why everyone is so crazy about no straws in drinks (except for frozen drinks of course)  Everyone will adjust in their own way.

The $25 charge for Chef's table has been in place already and is understandable.  The Steak house, Ji Ji's, Cucina Capitano etc. are not really out any specialty food preparation if you don't show up like Chef's table is.  They should not charge up front.  things happen--sunburns, too much Cheers package, tired or sore from zip lining- and you just can't make it to dinner.  If anything, a nominal hold of $5 a person to guarantee a venue and time reservation, refundable if you cancel within 2 hours of your reservation time so they could possibly book someone else.  I have never been to the steak house or Cucina when it is completely full any way.  The only reason for the upfront charge is they hope, like gift cards, people will forget about it or blow off the charge & Carnival gets the money without providing the service?!?!?

 I was on Magic in Feb and asked, on the taco side, for shrimp tacos and the server went to the burrito side and got me shrimp.  On Paradise in April, I asked for shrimp tacos and the guy looked at me like I was crazy and said only chicken, fish or beef.  The Blue Iguana set up on deck was different on Magic then on the Paradise but I don't know if the guy didn't want to walk the extra steps to get my shrimp, or didn't know he could get me shrimp from the burrito station.  Or maybe it is just on the Paradise they have no shrimp?

Perhaps if there is enough uproar Carnival will decide to have kitchen staff pipe little swirls of butter on to large sheet so people can grab and go , hopefully without contaminating.  Although they would have to keep the butter cold for the pats to stay together enough to grab and that is a lot of extra work.

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As for straws, I just bought paper straws with built in umbrellas at the Dollar Tree.  If I need a straw for a fancy drink I will use that.  If it is soda, I will put in my tervis tumbler with my own tervis straw.  The sugar based straws hold no appeal to me.

1 hour ago, NCbmwmom said:

Doesn’t the invitation say you and a guest? I take my husband, and it’s always been fine. 

No, the invitations now have only the Platinum guest's name.  Depending on the staff, I have seen people senak in a guest and I have seen guests refused.  I also think it may have to do with how many Platinum/Diamonds are on board.  On  Journey cruise they likely turn guests away since the ships sail with way more Platinums then average cruises.

Most liked/useful  Night Light (currently in my bathroom)

                                  Blanket (I know people thought they were too thin but I use mine all the time)

                                  Cream colored beach bag with mesh top and insulated zippered bottom area...great for bringing waters to                                           the  beach or on shore)

Least liked:  multi Game board

last one I saw sold on ebay for around $30.  Hard to find since they discontinued them so long ago

I remember when the Splendor came out in 2008.  It had Churchill's cigar bar on the deck below the dance club.   Those where put in when cigars smoking became a big thing.  Sailed Splendor about 2 years ago and Churchills is rarely used .  The computer hub was down there.  They held trivial pursuit down there a few times.  I think they still sold cigars but you had to go on deck to smoke them.

13 hours ago, coevan said:

 

 

It's not militant it's Maritime Law. Not one person can be missing or the muster can not end. They scan your S&S cards and know exactly who is missing. 

I understand it is Maritime law.  I was referring to the OP Danny NJ stating "The muster drill was 3:15, and it was very poorly run. We arrived at our station before 3:15 (casino) and sat down. Then we were told we weren't allowed to sit down as they were saving all the chairs for handicaps. We were lined up like soldiers, and staff paraded back and forth like my old drill sargeant telling us to stand straight and not to look at our smart phones"  I only meant our muster station was not as strict and we were able to sit.  After 25 cruises this time had the most missing people at the muster I have ever experienced.  Those are the people who need to understand it is Law to come to the muster.  It is so annoying to those of us who showed up early or on time and have to wait until their "I'm special , I don't need to go to muster drill" butts get called out by a crew  member and forced to attend the drill.  At least most ships don't make you stand outside in the heat, stacked on top of your fellow passengers wearing your life jacket any more.

I was on the April 13th sailing to Cuba.  The ship was refurbished last year and looks great.  Has USB plugs in room now!  I was in U215 one of the new balcony rooms.   Small cabin, no couch or table but plenty of storage and a "cooler" (not cold enough to be a fridge)    Muster was a bit painful as our muster station had a lot of missing people!  But it was not as militant as the OP described for us.  We did go early and sit closest to the door.

Looking for a great tour?  I ❤️ Cuba.  they are licensed photographers.  We brought a SD card & our guide/photographer took about 300 pictures of us and the things we saw.  1 hour in an old convertible and 5 hours in an air conditioned old car with OUR choice of itinerary.  contact  yoselvasquezyahoo.com or google search their website.

Definitely contact  specialneeds@carnival.com  before your trip.  They will advise you how to get wheelchair assistance which I highly recommend as any walking saved adds to the amount of walking your travel companions will be able to  do to get to lunch, etc once you board.  Also, if your ship doesn't have indoor muster stations in lounges, etc. , ask about special muster for people who need assistance or need to be able to sit during muster.   Since no one has priority status, make sure you ask guest services desk about assisted debarkation.  Early debarkation (I believe) requires you to haul your own luggage off the ship.  That with 3 of your party using wheelchairs would be a difficult feat.  Remember, the ship has to clear customs before anyone is let off so just one non- U.S. passenger not reporting to customs can delay the whole ship!

https://www.tripadvisor.com/Attraction_Review-g147296-d1959614-Reviews-Grenada_Discovery_Train-St_George_s_Saint_George_Parish_Grenada.html

20 hours ago, v3cruiser said:

Thats great info and a similar itinerary we have been putting together.

 

How long did it take to get through terminal and exchange money for CUC's to when you met your tour guide?

We got super lucky.  Got up early (5:30AM)  and got an "A" sticker so we would be the first group called after they took the Carnival excursions off the Paradise .  We had originally stated to our tour company we'd meet at 9AM (ship docks at 7) and he wanted to change it to 10 & I countered with 9:30.  Well, somehow the Carnival excursions must have been waiting for people or buses because at 7:15 they called anyone ready in group A,B or C now is your opportunity to disembark the ship.  So we were already packed up for the day, headed to deck 5 was through customs and the money exchange in 10 minutes tops!  So I know that was luck but there are many customs agents and people to exchange money so it should go smoothly once you get off the ship.    I ❤️ Cuba had changed their meeting place and we needed to grab a cab to the hotel.  Fortunately I had Yosel's phone # with me and called him to say we were at the hotel and it was 7:45!  He let our photographer Damien know & they grabbed us about 8:15 so we got started early

Just back from 5 day to Cuba.  We had 3 days of trivial pursuit, Friends, Game of thrones, Sports trivia every day, Cuba trivia, Fairy Tales, Golden Girls,  General knowledge and a few more I can't recall right now.  But it does depend on the CD and the Fun Squad what trivia they do during the week.

I just got back from Cuba and yes, I love Cuba guides are licensed as Photographers, not tour guides so they should be okay

Just back from Paradise 4/13/19 sailing to Key West and Cuba.   After much research my sister and I chose to book with I ❤️ Cuba photo tours.  Contact yoselvazquez@yahoo.com for info.   We paid the tour portion in USD so no need to convert $$ for that.  We did convert money to CUC for lunch, cigars, rum coffee and tips for our drivers and guide.  This tour included an hour in an old hot pink convertible and then 5 hours in an air conditioned old  Belvediere!   We had Damien as our photographer/guide.  We brought him an SD card to use to take photos of scenery, candid & posed pics of us.  He knew all the best spots with views, etc.  His English was perfect and he was very informative.  Best thing about this tour is you let them know what you want to see.  Our tour included a trip to the fort, El Morro, for the amazing city views & wonderful photo ops.  We also did John Lennon park so we could have our photo with the statue.  Colon Cemetery was next on the list ( I love cemeteries and this one is Huge with lots of amazing statues and memorials)  At Revolution plaza we ran into Yosel, the owner of the tour company.    We opted for lunch at a quick place so we'd have plenty of time at Fusterlandia.  We also did some walking around Havana Vieja (old town) area to look at the Capital, gorgeous buildings etc.  The obligatory stop for rum, cigars and coffee and back to the port.  Amazing day!

We were going out in the evening with people we met to walk around and bar hop.  We took an old car (cab) to Sloppy Joe's  (we  bargained down to $15CUC)  Not much was happening there as it was only about 8:30.  We had one Mojito & then walked around ending up at a rooftop bar at Hotel Ambos.  Beautiful view of the ship and nice breeze.  Drinks were $3-4 at both places.  Listened to some street musicians & walked back to the ship.

Here is the trick: I actually chose to convert some CUC back to USD before going out for the evening.  The terminal exchange closes at 8PM.  After that there is no way to change CUCs back to USD or vise versa.  You can't exchange CUCs in the states so anything you have left over is totally worthless outside of Cuba.  I still had about $20 CUC left and I guess it is now considered a souvenir!

It is HOT in Havana.  Be prepared with bottled water and lots of sunscreen and a hat!

Or use 3M poster putty (available at Target & office supply stores)   No residue

Hot Chocolate and soft serve ice cream=Frozen hot chocolate

Going on Paradise April 13th and it will be my first Chef's table experience.  What can I expect?

Are you part of the "F" group online  that ends in book?  You could post your question there...there are 84 members for that sailing.  Or post in the roll call for this sailing here on Cruise Critic.

Thanks for posting. We are doing their tour in a month & are very excited!